Severus Snape, driven by years of bitterness and a thirst for order, stalked the grounds, intent on disrupting the clandestine rendezvous of amorous young wizards. He knew their hormones ran wild. Lily's abandonment and Harry's scandalous affair with his godson fueled his righteous fury. Now, he would play the ultimate spoilsport! Absolutely no one would escape his justice!
But fate, as usual, mocked him. After a fruitless search lasting a frustrating half-hour, Snape found himself slumped in a small garden outside Hogwarts, icy snowflakes drifting down from the inky sky. Normally, he would have reveled in their cold embrace, but tonight, they only amplified his frustration.
Whoosh...
Snape's head snapped up, his gaze piercing the darkness, honing in on a patch of swaying grass in the distance.
"Hmph!"
He rose, his black robes billowing out in the snowy night like the wings of a giant, malevolent bat, and strode purposefully toward the quivering vegetation. Reaching the spot, he swept the grass aside with a flourish. "Aha! Got you... You two... lads?"
"..."
Snape had always known that Dumbledore's influence had warped Hogwarts' educational standards, but was it truly this depraved? Never in his darkest nightmares had he imagined such a scene unfolding within the castle walls; this was more the territory of Durmstrang! Adding insult to injury, the shameless little wizards, instead of showing remorse, were inviting him to join in on their... activities!
"I'll be damned..."
Seething, Snape yanked the disheveled boys to their feet, bellowing orders for them to return to their dormitories and prepare for a month of detention!
An hour later, looking several years older and considerably more haggard, Snape dragged himself back to the castle and slumped against the wall outside the Great Hall. The snowflakes continued to fall, but they offered no comfort; his heart was a frozen wasteland, colder than the storm itself.
"Oi, Professor Snape..."
The voice startled him. Snape turned his head to see the unmistakable form of "Moody," nursing a bottle of firewhiskey, propped up against the wall a short distance away.
"'Moody'" held out the bottle. "Couldn't find a dance partner either, eh?"
"..."
The "greasy-haired bat-like adulterer" wanted nothing to do with this conversation.
...
Tom, catching sight of "'Moody'" and the morose Snape sharing their woes by the outer wall of the Great Hall, averted his gaze and strode away from the castle. With nearly everyone inside enjoying the ball, the path was eerily silent. Were it not for the occasional Bowtruckle darting across the road in search of insects, Tom would have thought he had stumbled through some mysterious portal.
Finding nothing of interest nearby, he continued on until he emerged from the forest, and the landscape opened before him in breathtaking splendor. The dark clouds had parted, and the moon blazed in the night sky, its light refracting off the falling snowflakes, creating a dazzling display of sparkling light. The surface of the Black Lake was still and reflective, mirroring the full moon perfectly.
On the shore stood a young woman in a silver-streaked black dress, gazing into the heavens. From a distance, she appeared as a goddess, otherworldly and untouchable. Up close, however, she was simply Nagini—an emo pet snake in need of some attention.
"..."
Sensing Tom's approach, Nagini, uncharacteristically, remained silent. Tom couldn't suppress a smile; he knew exactly what was going on in that serpentine mind.
"I'm here now, aren't I?"
After witnessing the Snape fiasco, Tom found it reasonable to fulfill his obligation. He was generally good to his people. He simply hadn't mentioned it earlier because he wanted to avoid another dance in the Great Hall. People were like that; once they realised something wasn't off-limits, they would push their luck. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but it would have become tiresome. After dancing with two people in public, he would find himself besieged with invitations, which would have been harder to refuse, leading to countless awkward declines.
Back in the present, Nagini's cheeks flushed a faint pink at Tom's words.
"Hmm?"
Hearing his voice, she glanced furtively to the side and saw Tom extending his hand in a silent invitation.
"..."
She maintained her composure, choosing to emulate Tom's usual aloof demeanor, yet even in the moonlight, it was obvious that she accepted his gesture, placing her hand in his.
...
Elsewhere, two imposing figures met in the small garden outside the castle. Though unspoken, Madame Maxime was well aware of Hagrid's affections; the flowers, the attention to her horses... his feelings were clear. She, too, harbored similar feelings. At her considerable height, finding a compatible partner was no easy feat. So, when Hagrid had invited her to the ball, she had readily accepted.
Hagrid's joy upon receiving her acceptance was immeasurable. Unfortunately, like Madame Maxime, Hagrid had never experienced romance. At over sixty years old (Hagrid was born in 1928), he lacked the understanding of the delicate dance of courtship. During their earlier dance, his hand, initially resting on her back, had begun to drift downwards... a transgression for which Maxime had swiftly reprimanded him with a sharp slap. Thankfully, Madame Maxime was quite tolerant, hence their current rendezvous.
Now, the two sat contentedly in the small garden.
A short distance away, Snape was in a state of apoplectic rage... Had she chased him here to torture him?! He had just borne witness to Madame Maxime delicately removing crumbs from Hagrid's tiny-bow-tie-adorned mustache, and then placing them in her own mouth! And then she licked her fingers?!
"..."
Snape's face contorted with disgust; he couldn't deny his repulsion. Anyone else would have been subjected to a tirade of insults, point deductions, and solitary confinement. But Hagrid was a Hogwarts professor, untouchable. And Madame Maxime? Being Headmistress of Beauxbatons, she was even more immune. Snape was left with no resort but to rise and flee, a burning need to escape their display.
...
"Oh? Back again?"
"'Moody'" was still propped up in his corner outside the Great Hall. "Want a drink?"
He held out a bottle to Snape.
"..."
Snape's face darkened; no one could possibly comprehend the agony of his evening.
---
Reading all the way to the end and you still haven't reviewed this fanfiction yet?
What are you waiting for?!
Take a few seconds to smash the Vote Button and drop a review and help us dominate the rankings!